Archives for July 2013

Not long ago, I was working at my desk, checking my schedule for the week and living the virtual assistant lifestyle when I realized something. I’m not healthy. I’m tired all the time. I’m overweight. I don’t like the way I look or feel. How exactly did this happen?

At first I wasn’t sure. Don’t get me wrong—the work at home part of this equation is fabulous. I love having a flexible schedule and being home to raise my son while making a living doing something I love. But somehow, in the course of this, I got lazy.

The Danger Zone

First, I realized that I have access to my kitchen 24/7. When I used to work at a brick-and-mortar business, I would eat breakfast before I left home and I’d pack a lunch. Then I’d come home in the evening and make dinner. Now I found myself snacking throughout the day. I could just run into the kitchen and grab a quick bite or heat something up in the microwave whenever I wanted.

Computer Chair Butt

Then I realized how much of the day that I sit. All of my work revolves around sitting at the computer. At my offline job, I’d have to get up and go into different offices and parts of the building throughout the day. Now I can just sit here. I’ve designed my office in such a way that everything I need is at my fingertips. This is great from a productivity standpoint but not so good for my backside.

You Snooze You Lose

To add to all of this, I found that I was tired all the time. You know how much work goes into setting up and running your own business. You’re learning this yourself as you create your virtual assistant business. It seems there is always something to do and the whistle doesn’t blow at 5pm to end your day. Not to mention that you have things going on outside of your work life, like being there for your family. I wasn’t sleeping well, or enough, and I didn’t have the energy I needed to play with my son during my off time.

So what did I do about all of this? I did what any good solopreneur did. I whined and felt bad about myself. Okay, I did that for about a week—but then I took action! I realized that nothing was going to happen unless I made a change. I am now on a mission to get healthy. Here’s how I started.

Make Better Choices

Instead of walking into the Danger Zone when I enter my kitchen, it’s now a safer place to be. I started buying and eating more whole foods. I didn’t start with a complete overhaul of my fridge, but I made gradual changes. Over time, we used up the processed, boxed foods and began to purchase healthier, fresh options for our meals. I had already been cooking at home versus eating out for quite some time, but now I’m using fresh ingredients and a lot more veggies. Now, if I pop into the kitchen for a snack, I’m only faced with healthy options.

Move It to Lose It

I started taking a class at my local gym three days a week and I absolutely love it! I’m very proud to tell you that I’ve now been going there for five weeks! That’s a record for me when it comes to sticking with working out! The gym that I attend has a playroom for kids with staff who monitor them while you work out. This has been great for Danny and me. He gets interaction with other kids. I get some “me” time and we’re both out of the house and socializing!

Catching Zzzz’s

I also decided to try and go to bed a little earlier. I did that gradually as well, starting with 15 minutes earlier each night until I was finally going to bed an hour earlier than I used to. That has done so much for my energy coupled with the fact that I’m working out and eating better. I find that I feel more awake and alert during the day and while I’m working. I also have more energy to run around with my three year-old. After all, he’s the biggest reason that I wanted to work from home.

These are just a few small examples of how I’ve started to make changes to live a healthier work-at-home lifestyle. In the process, I met an awesome online friend who is not only healthy but motivating and super sweet!

Brittnei Washington will be visiting us here at New VA Advice with some posts that will help you live healthier and feel better. She’s a work-at-home mom just like us with a goal of getting people healthier and loving themselves. You can read the first in her series on the blog here.

What did you do today to start or move forward in building your virtual assistant business? Oh, you didn’t do anything yet today? Why not? What’s stopping you?

Roadblock in building your VA biz?

Know Your Why

If you’re really stuck and not making any progress, go back to your “why” for motivation. What’s your reason for creating your own virtual assistant business? I mean the real reason deep down at the heart of things.

Mine was pretty clear. I wanted a career where I called the shots and did something I loved while being home to raise my son. I didn’t want to miss all those firsts in his life. I wanted to work on my own terms and create a flexible lifestyle that left time to do other things I enjoy besides work, like spending time with my family, traveling and volunteering. What’s your why? And no, it’s shouldn’t just be “to make money.” What are you doing with that money? What will it do for your life?

If you haven’t written down your why yet and put it where you can see it every day, get on that. Sometimes we need a physical reminder to keep us motivated.

Do Something

So, what’s holding you back? Is it that you need to learn more about a certain skill? Then make learning that skill a priority so that you can move forward. Is it that you’re not sure about all the technical or legal stuff of being a solopreneur? Start researching and find the answers that you need.

My point is to do something in order to move you in a forward direction. Any step you take toward your goal is a positive one.

When I talk to clients who aren’t making progress with business building, they often say things like, “I was going to work on that today, but…” or “It was on my list, but…”

Let’s start changing those sentences around. You can say, “I didn’t get to that yet today, so now I’m going to…” or “It was on my list, so now I’m going to…” We all have setbacks. It’s normal.

Don’t Compare

We’re all working at our own pace. That’s okay, too. Your website launch day and the time it took you to get there is probably very different from someone else’s. Don’t compare yourself to others. You might be working on business building late in the evening after a tiring corporate job. Maybe you’re a stay-at-home mom who’s chasing the kids all day in the summer and shuttling them to sports practice during the school year. Maybe you work two part-time jobs and you work on your VA business at random hours in between. Everyone’s different but find the time that works for you.

Schedule It

Make an appointment with yourself. Put business building time in on your calendar. You schedule a dentist or doctor’s appointment for yourself, don’t you? You write down every soccer practice and baseball game for the kids, don’t you? Put this on your calendar, too.

Now we come back full circle to your why. If you really want something, you do what it takes to make it happen.

“Just don’t give up trying to do what you really want to do. Where there’s love and inspiration, I don’t think you can go wrong.” ~Ella Fitzgerald

Get Help

Need a little help staying motivated? We all do. I wouldn’t be where I am today if I didn’t open myself up and reach out to mentors and coaches that are in my life. Let me help you to keep moving in a forward direction. Check out my mentoring packages, choose one that’s right for you and let’s get you moving forward!